


Swap-Searcher

by RavenZaphara



Series: Soul-Searcher AUs [2]
Category: Underswap (Fandom), Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alphys is rlly intense, And violence, Asgore ded, Because I can't write a fic where he's not dead in some way apparently, Blood, CHAPTER ONE HAS BEEN REWRITTEN PLEASE REREAD, Cinnamon Roll Sans, Even if you haven't read Soul-Searcher, Eventual Smut?, F/F, Gen, Get ready for skele-crush, I promise everything will be explained eventually!, I'll do my best!, M/M, Not-so-slow burn, Other, Profanity, ROBO RAPTOR, Spoilers for Soul-Searcher!, Spoilers for Undertale?, Undyne can't talk very well, Violence, Wow, because guess what?, but that's okay, elements of horror later on, he's alive again, lots... and lots... of angsty violence, paps is sad, paps is slightly tsundere, that's one thing that didn't change, this should still make sense?, yandere antagonist - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-09
Updated: 2016-07-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 11:48:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7169798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RavenZaphara/pseuds/RavenZaphara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>*What if Soul-Searcher had taken place in UnderSwap? What could possibly change?<br/>*It's easier to list things that don't change.</p><p>WILL BE REPOSTED WITH HEAVY UPDATES AS OF 7/8/16!<br/>PLEASE REREAD CHAPTER ONE IT IS MUCH BETTER NOW!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Swap-Searcher

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Soul-Searcher](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6210733) by [RavenZaphara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RavenZaphara/pseuds/RavenZaphara). 



> Wow. This is heavier than I expected it to be...
> 
> So for those of you who haven't read Soul-Searcher:  
> Gaster was the Royal Scientist, yes. But he fell in love with his human test subject, the Blue-souled human, Crag. Crag, in Underswap, is all about dat science, and so eagerly agrees to experiment, leading to the conception of the skelebros. Gaster dies protecting Crag, and so Crag raises the brothers alone, while trying to find a way to revive Gaster-- and in doing so gets sucked into the Void. 
> 
> Author's note: I don't own Undertale, and I didn't come up with Underswap. However, my headcanons for Underswap might be very different from the original, so please bear with me!
> 
> Important to note: This story is going to be a lot darker than I originally pictured it. I will try to put warnings before anything that might be triggering. It's going to get darker yet darker up in this bitch though, so if there's anything you, the reader, find triggering, please let me know so I can tag it and possibly work around it. I want to be as inclusive as I possibly can.
> 
> TW for this chapter: Reference to abuse. Scars. Lobotomy. Death. Knives. Grieving.

Tiny rings of smoke.

Papyrus watched the smoke waft toward the roof of the small dusty house without interest. Not that it mattered, but he only had one more cigarette after this one, and the day wasn’t even half done. No one would notice that he’d just stuck in here anyway, though, right?

He took another drag and blew more tiny rings of smoke. Maybe just this once, he should go and do his job, huh?

Nah.

As he sat there, taking a final drag from the cigarette before snuffing the ember between fingertips, he looked up at the dissipating smoke wistfully. He wondered what it would be like to just drift into nothingness and just stay there. There was a heavy weight in his soul that he fought to suppress.

“Hello?” A deep voice asked from the entrance to the little house. Papyrus felt a dangerous jolt as his magic surged in anticipation. “Hello?” The voice repeated, and Papyrus went to his feet silently. He didn’t have Sans’s ability to cast Judgement, but…

The human who appeared in the archway was already covered in dust. He wore a confused look. _He’s surprised that I’m large._ Papyrus thought. _So far he’s only encountered small monsters._

“I didn’t take this from the kid, and I’m not taking it from you, buddy.” Papyrus said, and when the human went to speak again, Papyrus threw a chip of bone directly into the man’s face, lodging it firmly before letting it dissipate.

Lobotomy successful.

 _Six souls, now._ Papyrus gathered the large man into his arms and took a shortcut to Undyne’s lab.

“Undyne, pause it.” He said quietly. “Get the jar.” Undyne had been watching anime but then she caught sight of the dust covered human Papyrus held. She stammered for a few moments before she bit down on her tongue with a wince and got up to do as she was asked.

Papyrus slung the body down on an unoccupied bed in the lab. Undyne looked ready to talk again. Papyrus decided to explain and save her the trouble. “He’s not dead yet. We need to get his soul before it splinters and he resets, if he can.”

As the body slapped against the bed, something slung out of his pocket and skipped across the bed to clatter against the tile floor. The noise made them both flinch, and Papyrus felt his eyes light up warily. He walked around the bed and bent to pick it up.

“Wh-what is that?” Undyne’s voice, husky from lack of use, crackled and she shrank in on herself as Papyrus flipped the [straight razor](http://www.freewebs.com/norstar1/10173.jpg) open and stared hard at the nicked blade.

“Used.” He remarked. “Who knows how many he killed…”He sighed dismally and put his head in his hands. “I should have patrolled.”

Undyne stared at him for a moment longer before getting the special canister that held a human’s soul so that it couldn’t rupture. Her voice wouldn’t cooperate with her for a moment, but finally— “What do we d-do with the body?”

Papyrus shrugged his shoulders, putting his hands back in his hoodie pocket, knife still in hand. If, somehow, this foul creature awoke, soulless… he didn’t like the idea of him being armed. Red eyes haunted Papyrus's memories, and the clutch of guilt dragged him lower into his slouch.

“I’ll take care of it, Undyne. No problem.” He said. “Just get the soul. And keep this between you and me, okay? No one else can know for now.” He looked deeper into the lab, where a curious amalgam peered at him from the shadows before sinking further back into the lab.

Undyne understood the unspoken threat. She couldn’t afford for her experiments to be outed. She nodded and summoned the catatonic human’s soul out.

“Will this even count?” Papyrus asked. “He has absolutely no strong qualities.”

Undyne pointed to the dull blue heart tentatively. “He has enough DT…” She finally rasped. “I’ll do some tests on it before putting it with the others.” The resignation in her voice made Papyrus sigh. They were of a single mind.

Papyrus nodded, and Undyne placed the soul in the canister, sealing it and staring at it like it contained an unorthodox butterfly rather than a murderous human’s culmination.

The body twitched, and Papyrus spared it a glance. Brown eyes blank of emotion stared up at him, and his mouth quirked so slightly Papyrus wondered if he’d imagined it. “I’m off to deal with this one.” Papyrus muttered.

Undyne only nodded and retreated deeper into the lab to take notes.

Papyrus wasted no time in throwing the lug over his shoulders and taking a shortcut into Waterfall, to the little area that existed without existing. No one was around to see, but Papyrus checked anyway.

After all, the danger of Sans appearing here was real. How would he explain this?

Before the possibility could increase, Papyrus wrenched the out-of-place grey door open and stepped through. He shut the door behind him—on the human’s arm. With a grunt, he pulled the human’s useless limb into the room and tried again. Satisfied, he approached the small frame in the middle of the room. He tossed the human’s body down, and the figure in the room looked first at it and then at Papyrus dubiously.

“ ~~ **should i applaud this or…?**~~ ”

Papyrus shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Just need you to keep him down if he tries to get back up. I don’t exactly want my LOV to increase.”

There was silence for a moment. “ ~~ **sans still doesn’t know, does he?**~~ ”

Papyrus shook his head. “He promised me he wouldn’t look.” Sans’s ability to see people’s stats was both a blessing and a curse. Luckily, Sans would never break a promise. Papyrus could delude himself that Sans wouldn’t find out that his brother’s hands were stained with human blood. Child blood, at that.

To escape from his thoughts, Papyrus looked at the perpetually smiling creature in the room, his and Sans’s father—or what was left of him. Apologetically, almost, he leaned against the wall and waited for “Words of Wisdom.”

The human once known as Blue was now little more than a shadow. He was missing his left pinkie, and his skin had become translucent in places, showing partially-dissolved muscle moving like fluid over pale bones that had seen better days. He was incredibly short; Sans was Blue’s spitting image.

Papyrus sometimes wondered just how much humanity he had, himself. Not only did he not resemble Blue at all, but his soul was entirely solid. It was entirely like a monster’s. Unlike Sans’s, but that wasn’t important.

Papyrus knew that he took after his other father—Blue didn’t believe in keeping secrets from them. As for that mystical creature that Blue affectionately referred to as “that bony fuckall,” Papyrus knew little about him other than he was dead.

Blue smiled up at his son. “ ~~ **i trust your instincts. you weren’t wrong about the kid, after all.**~~ ” Papyrus flinched. Blue rushed to reassure him. “ ~~ **you did the right thing. hell, it means we’re one step closer to you guys seeing the surface! i’m excited for you...with any luck… perhaps… another human will fall down soon.**~~ ” The look on his face would have struck Papyrus oddly if he’d actually been paying attention.

“Let’s hope it’s a day when I’m doing my goddamned job.” He put his head in his hands. “I fucked up. I don’t know how many he killed…”

“ ~~ **you couldn’t have known.**~~ ” Blue reminded him. Both of them knew it wasn't true. If Papyrus had come to visit, Blue would have warned him. Hell, Blue had even tried to talk to him at home recently, but Papyrus had been too busy to listen.

“I should have been paying more attention. The Resets have stopped. I can’t exactly get a second chance on this.”

“ ~~ **well… then go get their dust and bring them to undyne. she’ll make them into flower monsters. no problem, right?**~~ ”

“Dammit, that is a problem!” Papyrus growled. “Alphys and Sans will notice that everyone’s gone. Fuck, and Hapsta might have been attacked, too. I need to…”

“ ~~ **papy, i need you to calm down.**~~ ” Blue reached out, but his fingers weren’t substantial enough for Papyrus to feel. “ ~~ **you gotta find a way to chill out. first thing you need to do on the surface is smoke some goddamned reefer. for fuck’s sake.**~~ ” He looked at the human body and sighed. “ ~~ **i’ll take care of this… but i need you to do something really important.**~~ ”

“And what’s that?” Papyrus didn’t mean to sound bitter, but the reality of the day was sinking in for him.

“ ~~ **i need you to guard the ruins tonight.**~~ ”

“Why?” He asked, expression clenched, words sharp. “Humans fall down here once per decade, twice if we’re lucky. And we were lucky this time, if you can call it that. I really doubt we’ll get any more of them any time soon.” He looked at Blue, saw the sass in those eyes. “Okay, okay, I’ll hear you out.”

“ ~~ **bout fucking time. you’re worse than gaster.**~~ ” Blue sighed. “ ~~ **most of the futures i can see branching off from here involve another human. soon. like…**~~ ** _tonight_** **,** ~~ **soon.**~~ ”

Papyrus put his head in his hands. “Should I kill from the shadows, or…?”

Blue shrugged, but Papyrus could plainly see the wariness, the discomfort in his face. “ ~~ **look, i’d be more helpful if there weren’t so fucking many paths.**~~ ” He scratched at the left side of his scalp, as far away from the visible crack in his head as he could, even though he no longer felt pain.

“ ~~ **the trouble, tol child, is that this human is very different. there are a million different ways their entry to the underground could go. my advice is don’t kill them, but once they’re down, don’t let them leave, either.**~~ ”

“Why? What if they start killing everyone just like this one and…” His voice froze. He’d been about to say the kid’s name, hadn’t he? No. No.

“ ~~ **well, i’ll put it bluntly. about half of the futures involving**~~ ** _that particular human_** ~~**lead to me having grandkids.**~~ ”

Papyrus sat there in stunned silence, staring at his father with shock and revulsion. “Don’t mean to disappoint you… and please don’t take this the wrong way… but I’d really rather cut my dick off than fall for a human. Unless… You mean they end up with Sans?”

“ ~~ **nope. they’re all yours. and i’d advise you not to go about lopping anything off just yet.**~~ ” He gave his son a smug look. Call it awkward all you want, but Blue had come to terms with the fact that he was perpetually stuck in his twenties, raising kids who were in their late twenties, themselves. Sometimes the parenting shtick had to drop. Sometimes he had to be the weird, vulgar, human sidekick—and he wasn’t adverse to that notion at all.

Papyrus groaned in despair. “Naw, I’m not going for this. I’ll let them get out, if they try. I don’t care. Or…” He stopped himself.

“ ~~ **or?**~~ ” Blue prompted, un-scarred eyebrow hitched.

“Nothing.” Papyrus said grimly, looking at the human’s perma-smiling face. Had he had flesh on his face, his lips would have curled up in a disgusted snarl. At himself. _I was about to suggest just… killing the newcomer and tossing them down here with this one. Fuck, I’m losing myself, aren’t I?_

Blue got Papyrus’s attention gently. “ ~~ **just… hear me out. it’s important, okay? give them one week. however… in that week, you’re gonna have to disguise them so no one tries to kill them. they aren’t able to defend themself right now.**~~ ” He pointed to the human on the floor. “ ~~ **this guy, however…**~~ ” He smirked. “ ~~ **worse than the kid. by far. you did the right thing, okay? just… don’t do the same thing to the new one unless i’m wrong and they strike first.**~~ ”

Papyrus had no doubt that he’d made the right choice today, but he didn’t like the reminder that this wasn’t the first time he’d done this. And, apparently… it might not be the last.

Was he ready for that? He’d have to be.

“Seems like more work than it’s worth, but… I owe you for not… paying attention to you sooner. This all could have been avoided.” Papyrus pushed off the wall and turned for the door, saluting over his shoulder.

“ ~~ **tell sans i said hi.**~~ ” Blue said, choosing not to add insult to injury by agreeing that Papyrus should have visited him sooner, or at least talked to him. “ ~~ **oh! and next time, bring me a burger, huh?**~~ ”

“You can’t eat.”

“ ~~ **let me dream! i’ve been trapped in here for more than ten years!**~~ ”

“You’re not keeping exact count?”

“ ~~ **that’s too much work.**~~ ” Blue called after Papyrus as he neared the door.

At the door, he hesitated. “One week.” He said, loud enough for Blue to hear.

 

* * *

 

The ruins were musty, cold, and ungodly silent. Undyne was already fast at work reviving the monsters. Luckily, it had only been a few. The human hadn’t relentlessly hunted everyone down… he’d only killed everyone who approached him.

Papyrus must have fallen asleep in the shadows. He woke up when he heard something hit the ground. A rock.

“Hey, Ko… are you down there?” Your voice called from above. Slightly raspy, tired, and fearful. “Please be okay, I’m coming down for you!”

A rope descended, and you began climbing down from it. You cried out as your grip failed and you fell.

Papyrus gently halted your descent with his magic. When you were about a foot from the ground he let go of you, and you fell on your ass in the flowers, letting out a _mmph!_ from the impact.

You got up, dusting yourself off. You were wearing a skintight long sleeve shirt, but the cuffs didn’t quite cover the extensive tattoos that peeked past the wrist and onto the back of your hands. Your hair was long and pulled back in a sloppy ponytail. Eye sockets shadowed heavily from lack of sleep and apparent bruising…

“Shit…” You grumbled, checking your rear pocket and retrieving a pack of smashed cigarettes. You opened the box and investigated them, cursing again when you discovered they were of little to no use now.

Papyrus put his hood up and cleared his throat. He held his pack of cigarettes out to where you could see the last remaining stick. The moonlight hinted at his form, but you couldn’t see him clear enough.

“You’re not Ko…” You muttered.

Papyrus’s mind reeled. How should he proceed?

Your eyes stared through him. You looked lost and scared. Your hand shook as you reached tentatively for the cigarette. “Have you… seen a man down here?” You took the cigarette and used your hands to gesture in illustration. “Shoulder length dark hair, dark eyes. Tall…” You gulped when you noticed how tall the man in front of you was. “N-not as tall as you.”

Should he lie?

He pulled the knife from his hoodie pocket and let the moonlight glint off of it. “He dropped this after he killed some of my friends.”

You didn’t even gasp. Your eyes followed the gleaming metal with a haunted expression. Papyrus had a bad feeling, but… he was desperate to give you the benefit of the doubt—Blue wouldn’t forgive him if he didn’t at least try.

“I’m sorry. It’s my fault he was here.” You said quietly. For some reason, those words pissed him off. After a moment, he realized why. You were taking the blame for that lumbering asshole’s actions. As if it were nothing new, even.

“Why he was here doesn’t matter. He killed innocent people. Himself.” Papyrus’s voice made you flinch away.

You were quiet, holding the cigarette in a hand that shook. “He’s dead, isn’t he?”

“Close enough.” He said bitingly.

Your eyes flickered to the rope, and your hand twitched in its direction. “I… guess I’ll… just leave then? Thanks for the… cigarette…” You trailed off, eyes wide and fearful, still resting on the gleaming blade.

Papyrus sent a sharp shard of bone through the rope higher up. As soon as you grabbed it, it snapped, tumbling to the ground. You stared at it for a moment as your mind processed what it meant.

Papyrus put the knife in his hoodie pocket. “Welcome to the Underground. If you kill anyone, you’ll regret it.”

He would give you a chance. He would show you Mercy—but only this once. Forget “one week.” If his dad was trying to match him up with you, he wasn’t going to just sit and take it. He was lazy, sure, but falling for you didn’t seem like a good idea. Especially considering the company you’d kept.

He began walking, preparing to take a shortcut directly home, but you moved suddenly, reaching out and grabbing his sleeve. “Please, no!”

He turned around, and your eyes widened again as they adjusted to the darkness. Papyrus sighed and waited for the inevitable screams. After a moment of silent staring, your expression became one of resolve rather than fear. “Please don’t leave me alone here.” You finally said.

He grumbled a bit but motioned for you to follow him. You weren’t going to make this easy, were you? “You’re not afraid of me?” He asked dryly, leading you through the Ruins. “Even though it’s pretty obvious what I did to your friend?”

Your mouth was a hard line. “You have more guts than I do.” You muttered.

Papyrus laughed a bit and lifted his hoodie and tank top to show the empty hollow where his stomach would have been if he were more... fleshy. “You must be pretty lacking in guts, then.”

You made a noise in your throat and lit the cigarette you’d still been holding. “So… you’re… a skeleton?”

“What gave it away?” He asked, trying to retain his patience, yanking the hem back down and staring ahead as the two of you walked toward the exit of the Ruins. You didn’t ask any more questions for a while. You were already shivering, he noticed and grimaced. Sure the Ruins were a bit dank, but… “You get cold easily, don’t you?”

You stared at him. “Uh… yeah?”

He sighed and took off his hoodie. “This should help a bit.” He offered it to you, holding onto your cigarette as you scrambled into the oversized garment. It was pleasantly warm and you discovered it was lined with something fuzzy. You sighed happily. When you looked up, Papyrus was taking a draw from the cigarette. He handed it back to you, and you blushed and took another drag.

Papyrus didn’t want to notice the vibes he was getting from you. Yeah, he couldn’t read souls like Sans could… but he wasn’t totally blind to them. He just saw different things. You felt so many things—and he could feel that. He could feel your hesitation, your gratefulness, your fear, and… your determination.

 _Where am I taking them?_ He asked himself angrily. _Can’t just parade a human around Snowdin._

“Okay, human. Put the hood up and follow me closely.” He began walking briskly. You followed the tall skeleton, trying not to stare at his bones. He had been wearing a simple black tank top under his coat, and you found yourself unable to look away as you tried to discern how he worked. He looked at you, saw you staring up at him. You blushed and looked away quickly.

“Where are we going?” You asked at last, but now that you weren’t staring at him, you noticed you weren’t in the same place anymore. The air pressure was different here, and the air was fresher, but damper. You could hear what sounded like rain further off.

As the two of you kept walking, suddenly there was no sound, as if everything else had just been… cut off. Papyrus stood in front of an out-of-place grey door. “In here.” He answered lazily, and gestured toward the door impatiently. “Hurry up. Don’t want my brother to find you out here.”

He opened the door and you stepped through. He came in behind you and noticed a sickly quiet that hadn’t been there before.

“Fuck.” Papyrus grumbled, peering over you at the small, star-struck form of Sans as he peered at you. Blue lounged in the corner, more puddle than man, looking insanely pleased with himself.

“ ~~ **off to a good start, huh?**~~ ” Blue wiggled his eyebrows infuriatingly at his taller son.

Sans practically flew toward you and began talking your ear off, asking you questions of a varying range.

“Ohmygosh!” He pushed your sleeves up and admired your arms. “ARE YOU IN THE YAKUZA?!”

You looked a bit startled, and were halfway into your explanation when Sans’s exploration of your arms brought the heavy scarring underneath the ink to his attention. “Human, what are these bumps and ridges?”

Papyrus leaned over and looked. Sure enough, he could make out the tell-tale markings cleverly hidden by the shapes engraved into your skin in varying shades.

You stood stock still and didn’t answer, seeming terrified that someone had seen and touched your scars. Sans didn’t entirely notice your discomfort, leaning in to give you a warm hug. He was roughly the same height as you, Papyrus noticed. Your eyes were wide and darting back to him.

“Uh… this is my brother, Sans.”

“OH! Yes, I am the Magnificent Sans!” Sans leaned back out of the one-sided hug and grinned at you. Mystified, you smiled back, eyes still wide. You were obviously overwhelmed. Papyrus almost felt bad for you. Almost.

Blue chuckled from the corner, and you glanced in his direction and then quickly looked away with a whimper.

“Does it hurt to look?” Papyrus asked, confused. Distantly, he remembered feeling discomfort interacting with Blue after he’d fallen into the Void’s clutch. Not that it remained anymore, really… “Sans, step back and let them breathe for a moment.”

Sans obeyed. “What’s going on, Papy?” He asked excitedly. “Dad told me you had a date-friend coming over! Is this your date-friend?!”

Papyrus gave his father a look that would paralyze a lesser being. Blue merely laughed. “ ~~ **sans, i told you. they aren’t date friends yet. give it time.**~~ ”

“Dammit, stop planning my life out!” Papyrus cried out, surprising his brother and father both. The human was sitting with their back against the wall, forcing themself to breathe steadily, head resting on their knees.

Blue moved his body like fluid to lazily come to a semblance of standing vertically. He came closer to the center of the room and you glanced up at him. Blue met your eyes sympathetically. “ ~~ **nice to meet you. i trust my son has been treating you well?**~~ ”

You shuddered but did your best to reply. Your voice caught in your throat a few times before the words finally manifested. “This was… not what I expected to find down here.”

Blue’s eyes narrowed the tiniest bit. His smile twitched. “ ~~ **well… if you stick with us, you’ll be safe and happy for as long as you want to be.**~~ ”

You glanced at Sans and Papyrus warily. Sans sat down next to you, still bouncing slightly from excitement. Papyrus sat down, back against the opposite wall, keeping a close eye and ear (figuratively, of course) on everything that was going on.

Blue looked at Papyrus impatiently, but he ignored it. He wasn’t going to huddle in proximity with you if he could help it. Being close to you put him on edge. Because you’re a human. Yeah…

Blue knew the power of suggestion and that it worked _very_ well on Papyrus.

Blue knew that a week was all it would take.

You had grown relatively used to the cusp of the Void. Sans was holding your hand in encouragement, and that seemed to help. Papyrus was monitoring what information he could get from your soul’s aura (so to speak) and was only getting a feeling of some intense pain that he couldn’t fully understand.

Of course it was only wariness and morbid curiosity that had him investigating the limited knowledge he could ascertain from the dull-feeling soul you were actively not guarding.

Blue spoke to you. “ ~~ **so here’s what you need to know. monsters are nice.**~~ ” He looked at Papyrus wryly. “ ~~ **even my asshole-ish son over here. he might be a saucebox, but i’m sure he’ll come around eventually.**~~ ” That smirk made Papyrus growl and he refused to look away. Your eyes met his for a moment and you immediately gave Blue your attention again.

 _Good._ Papyrus thought. _With any luck they’ll just stay scared of me._

That reminded him. If you said anything about the man you’d called Ko, that would require explaining everything to Sans.

He hoped you kept your mouth shut.

Blue continued. “ ~~ **well, i lied a bit there, i’m sorry. there’s one monster who’s a total bitch, but…**~~ ”

Sans looked a bit offended. “She’s not that bad, Dad! She’s actually really nice and she makes the best pies!”

Blue shrugged and grimaced in place of a smile. “ ~~ **call me biased. she killed my mate.**~~ ” He explained to you. “ ~~ **she wanted a shot at me, because i was human. just like you. and if she finds you, she’ll do the same thing.**~~ ”

“I’m not safe here?” You asked softly, as if this were nothing new. “Why is she after humans?”

Blue ground his teeth. “ ~~ **monsters are sealed in this mountain by the cumulative power of seven human souls. the barrier will fall if toriel gathers seven human souls—so whenever a human falls, she kills them and takes their soul. your soul would be the seventh.**~~ ”

You looked at the two skeletons uneasily. “And you guys… don’t want to get to the surface? You’re not going to kill me and let everyone go?”

Blue shrugged. “ ~~ **i mean, we**~~ _ **could**_ ~~ **but why should we? you know how humans are, right? they’re assholes. has that changed in the past thirty years or so?**~~ ”

You shook your head and worried a scar on your wrist unwittingly. “So… that’s the only reason?”

“ ~~ **like i said, why would we? if toriel breaks the barrier, she’ll work at waging war on the humans again.**~~ ”

You grimaced. “Just what the world needs. More violence.”

“ ~~ **exactly. and considering that monsters are easy enough for humans to kill, she would potentially be putting her people to death. so bear with me here. i need you to disguise yourself as a monster and say you’re from the surface.**~~ ”

“Um… I don’t exactly know how you expect me to… disguise myself…”

Sans jumped to his feet and began hopping excitedly. “Papy is the best at making costumes! He helped me make my battle body!”

Papyrus facepalmed. “Not happening, bro.”

Sans glared at Papyrus. “Don’t be rude, Papy! This is important!” He clasped his hands and posed innocently, stars in his sockets. “When we finally do get to the surface, I want to make friends with all the humans. I don’t want to hurt anyone!”

Papyrus was aware of that, at least.

With a defeated sigh, Papyrus finally acquiesced. “Fine, I’ll help you get disguised. What do I do, Blue?”

Blue smiled, reveling in his triumph. “ ~~ **well, both of you stand up.**~~ ” They followed directions, and Blue ushered them closer to each other. Reluctantly, they once again complied. To you, Blue spoke firmly. “ ~~ **i need you to close your eyes and focus really, really hard on something badass. something that feels right. got that?**~~ ”

He waited for you to nod, eyes clenched shut, head downcast. Papyrus stared at you for a moment. “Now what, Dad?” He wanted to get this over with so he could go to sleep.

“ ~~ **so now you wrap them with your magic. let it mix with their intention and let them mold it to fit the image in their head.**~~ ”

Well at least that didn’t sound very difficult. Sans piped up from behind you. “Should I help?”

“ ~~ **maybe next time, lil blue.**~~ ” Blue said affectionately, wishing he could give the smaller one a hug. “ ~~ **in fact, maybe you should be getting home. you have a big day tomorrow, don’t you?**~~ ”

Sans let out an undignified squeak at the reminder. “OH STARS YOU’RE RIGHT!” He hurriedly sprinted out of the room, but the door opening and closing made no noise to distract you.

Papyrus was busily wrapping you with the magic, trying not to focus on you so much as the action. He felt your intentions as you willingly accepted the magic flowing around and—there was more to this, Papyrus realized, but breaking the action now might have disastrous effects.

He had realized that you were _absorbing_ the magic, and your form wasn’t just taking on a different semblance. You were actually _changing_. No, that wasn’t the right word. 

Red-orange scales glittered despite the lack of light. Your horns and claws were black, and your magnificent wing membranes were charcoal, fading nearly to white toward the bottom.

 _Holy fuck._ Papyrus thought, staring incredulously at you. _They got taller._

Papyrus noted that you still had the markings on your arms, but instead of the array of colors they’d previously been, they were now pale and translucent, glimmering faintly.

Blue was certainly satisfied. “ ~~ **okay, so you need a name. i advise you drop the human name. start out fresh, you know?**~~ ”

You didn’t answer at first. You had just opened your eyes and looked up at Papyrus shyly.

Papyrus looked away, hoping that his expression passed for a grimace. _What the hell was that look for?!_ You continued to stare up at him with those fiery silvery eyes. You weren’t that much shorter than him now. And with your stature, you even looked like you could challenge Alphys.

Papyrus glared at Blue. “Not a fucking word, Dad.”

Blue looked overjoyed. Fingers steepled, grin bright, eyes wide and expressive as he looked at the two of you with more approval than Papyrus had ever seen.

Well at least someone was happy.

You turned to Blue. “What do I look like?”

“ ~~ **you’re a majestic fucking dragon. knew it. i fucking called it.**~~ ”

You fidgeted, obviously shy from the complement. “You said I need to change my name?”

“ ~~ **yeah, yeah. like… badly. how about… slate?**~~ ”

“Slate?” You didn’t look impressed.

“ ~~ **yea, cuz your life was wiped clean. clean like a clean slate.**~~ ”

You stared at him blankly.

“ ~~ **clean slate.**~~ ” He repeated gruffly. A [memory ](https://youtu.be/FUDHcuLnMVc)of the surface sparked your reaction. You began chuckling. Papyrus looked at you like you were crazy. At this point, he wouldn’t be surprised if everyone was, himself included.

Your chuckling became full, raucous laughter, and Papyrus had to admit he liked the sound.

You seemed to realize you were laughing and immediately silenced yourself, clicking your fangs with the effort. You blanched at the unfamiliar feeling, and then reached back to touch your wings for the first time—and then your tail.

“ ~~ **oughta get them home, papy.**~~ ” Blue said. “ ~~ **as comfortable as they are in the void, don’t wanna push it, y’know?**~~ ”

He would ask about you being ‘comfortable’ in the Void another time. “What do you mean, get them home?”

“ ~~ **take a wild guess, _sherlock bones_.**~~ ” Blue grumbled.

Papyrus groaned in agony but didn’t argue. “Follow me, human.”

“ ~~ **remember to call them slate, dumbass.**~~ ” Blue laughed.

“ _Slate_ then. Follow me, or you’re staying and suffering with him.”

You were sorely tempted.

 

* * *

 

When the two of you emerged from the cusp of the Void, your ears were ringing and you groaned, falling against the wall and looking around. The door was gone and the noise of rain had come back. You expected to feel cold but…

You realized your eyes were clamped shut and you cautiously pried them open to see Papyrus standing a couple feet away looking torn about what he should do.

“You okay?” He finally asked, tone flat.

You nodded, though whether you were truthful remained to be seen. Papyrus mused that as much as he’d love to just drag you through a shortcut, he wasn’t sure just how much reality-bending you could stomach at this point.

He shrugged and continued walking, stopping after a piece to make sure you followed. You dragged yourself after him, and he finally took pity on you. “Come here.” He grumbled. “Climb up on my back, I’ll carry you. That way we’ll get home before dawn.”

You bit down your salt and took the offer. He still had about six inches on you, you noted nervously. His physique wasn’t exactly impressive—he was made of christ-forsaken _bones_ —but you were surprised that he could carry your weight without much awkwardness until your wings began to adjust.

Papyrus noted your warmth as you clambered up onto his back. Well, regardless of whether it was due to you still wearing his hoodie under all that magic or perhaps the idea of you being a red dragon (logically, one could assume you’d have ties to fire, right?), he could admit the warmth felt nice against his bones.

 _Will the cold hurt them?_ He wondered briefly, and considered his options. With a frustrated sigh, he began walking through Waterfall toward his home. You were quiet, but he couldn’t mind.

In lieu of the familiar feeling of magic radiating off of normal monsters, he could feel something like an echoed heartbeat against him. It was the first time he’d heard or felt a human heartbeat since Blue was alive. It unnerved him a bit.

The silence stretched on, and Papyrus began to feel like perhaps it wasn’t so pleasant after all. You spoke, jaw resting on his shoulder. “He… didn’t hurt you, did he?”

Something in your tone made him quick to reassure you. “Nah.” He responded easily, pressing on and trying to ignore the heavy thrumming of his magic answering your heartbeat. He gripped your legs to keep you on his back, trying not to think too hard about the fact that you were technically naked.

Of course he had to think it in the first place. He felt his cheeks color and had his hands not been occupied holding your legs, he would have massaged his face until his magic behaved itself.

“Good.” You whispered against his neck, and he fought to suppress a shiver.

You were hurting. He could feel it. He realized that you and the brutish human had very likely been much more than just friends. If that level of pain he was empathizing with was any indication, you cared about him deeply for some reason.

“You’re gonna be okay.” He reminded you, upset that his voice wasn’t quite distant enough.

You jolted a bit but nodded in response after a moment’s thought. “Thank you.”

He began wondering if it was too late at night to call Felix and Fred and ask them to hook you up with some clothes until he could afford to pay someone professional to outfit you. In his head, he was thinking and rethinking how sleeping arrangements would work.

“Alright, listen up.” He said at last.

Silence.

He paid attention to you for a moment and noticed how slack your grip had become, how even and deep your breathing was. You had fallen asleep.

Papyrus sighed. He’d just have to play it by ear, then. The front door creaked open and Papyrus walked through, shutting it behind him as softly as his magic would allow.

His mind drifted back to the tattoos covering your arms. He’d heard about these weird markings from Undyne once. She’d insisted on telling him about how humans did it as a show of pain tolerance, as well as to show affiliation to a gang. Papyrus wondered if that was entirely true. He’d have to ask you—No, that wasn’t necessary.

_Goddammit, Papyrus, focus._

He got upstairs and accidentally jostled you. You stirred, nuzzling into his shoulder-blade and murmuring in a way that made his bones tingle. It was aggravating.

“Hey, wake up.” He encouraged you as he set you down on his bed. You clung to him for a moment before realizing you were on a bed now. You cracked your eyes open and looked up at him. You blinked and your expression went from confused to panicked to relieved in the span of a couple seconds.

Papyrus just shook his head and turned to leave the room. You let out a startled noise and he turned, an impatient glare forming.

When he looked back at you, though, he saw the disguise begin to flake away in places. The wings were the first to fade, but soon you were sitting on Papyrus’s bed, huddled in the sea of his hoodie.

 _Why the fuck…?_ He groaned in exasperation and walked to his dresser. He rummaged around until he found a relatively unrumpled tank top and a pair of clean boxers. He threw both to you. “We’ll figure this out tomorrow. I don’t know about you, but I’m fucking exhausted.” He looked you over and then glanced away. “Give me my hoodie back.”

You looked at the clothes and then at him, blinking at him. At last the words seemed to process in your sleep-starved brain, and you stripped off the coat. Papyrus glimpsed your stomach and saw a mass of scars on your un-inked skin. If he had a stomach, it would have turned. Was that why you'd stared at the knife like that when you’d seen it in his hands? Had the brutish human made those markings?

He took the coat and averted his gaze, leaving you alone in the room and sinking against the other side of the door despairingly. He searched the pocket and was glad to note the knife was still there. He had forgotten it—and he was lucky you hadn’t killed him with it.

There was a knock from the other side. He opened the door and saw you standing there, looking up at him like a startled cat. You were waiting for something—and he realized he was holding the knife where you could see it. He remembered the scars on your stomach and again his magic roiled in him, making him feel nauseous despite not having the fleshy bits that would prompt that reaction. He put the knife back in his pocket and gave you his best attempt at a smile.

You smiled weakly back up at him and then looked away. Your hands were covering as much of your arms as you could. They were folded over your chest. Bared of the sleeves, he could see the beautiful markings in full despite your attempts to cover them. “What do you want from me?”

He wasn’t sure he heard you right. “Say what?”

You flinched away rather than risk repeating yourself. You didn’t seem afraid—just resigned. That made Papyrus’s soul ache. “I don’t want anything from you. The only reason you’re here is Blue seems to think it’s important that you stick with me and Sans.” He included Sans mostly to detract from the full truth. Papyrus, too, understood the power of suggestion.

You looked up at him, brow knitted, eyes misty. Yes, your left eye was puffy and purple with bruising, he noted. “Why?”

“I don’t really know.” He lied. “But here’s one thing you should know. I’m watching you. I’m not too fond of humans, I’m sure you can understand. Your friend isn’t the first to come down here and play whack-a-mole with us.”

You flinched. Papyrus softened his tone. “So here’s the plan: in the morning, we try the disguise thing again. We need to figure out why it failed just now, and the only person who can tell me that right now is Blue.”

You nodded and looked down. “So I’m going to live a lie until someone decides it’s more convenient to just…” You gestured with your hand, voice tight, face slack. You didn’t seem to care one way or another.

He shrugged. “The surface can wait. I don’t really care one way or another, but my bro does. I personally don't think humans are very likely to not just kill us. I know the damage just one of them could do. Imagine us being out there in a sea of them."

You waited for him to explain where that left you, but he didn’t. “So… you’re just… going to let me live and…?”

Papyrus looked at you. “What, you in a hurry to die, or something?”

“Not really, I guess.” You admitted. “But… I don’t understand. There’s literally nothing stopping you from just… killing me and setting everyone free. It looks like you’re actually just making more work for yourself.”

That was a good point. He tried to look away from you, but then had a thought. “Trust me for a moment, would you?”

“What about?”

“I want to look at your soul real quick.”

Confusion and then curiosity flitted across your face, and you nodded.

Papyrus coaxed your soul out, and the room was bathed in intense light. He was breathless for a long moment, staring into it. Maroon, darkening toward the center, where it became muted and murky. He reached out as if to touch it and then realized what he was doing and stopped.

“Wow.” You breathed. Papyrus returned your soul before he could think to do something stupid again.

He cleared his throat and you met his eyes. “So, uh… the Royal Scientist and I have a kind of deal, you know? I can probably keep her quiet about you… she’s a good friend, and it’s not like she has anyone she can tell.” He was visibly thinking.

“For right now, I think it’s smarter for you to stay under wraps, okay?”

Hesitantly, you nodded. He sighed and looked down the hall at Sans’s door. “You’re safe here. Just don’t leave the house without me or Sans, okay?”

He noticed you stiffened at the word ‘safe’ and thought for a moment why that could be.

“Can you promise that with good conscious?” You asked, looking unsure.

He shrugged again. “Well, _he_ won’t be bothering you anymore. If that helps.”

You stared down at your hands for a moment, and then at your arms. You nodded but didn’t look back up. _Shit, was that wrong to say?_ He tried to remain passive, but it was difficult, incredibly so.

“Get some rest, yeah?” You nodded and backed away from the doorway. You looked lost and nervous, but even more… you looked like you were preparing for something. Like you were ready for him to snap.

“I never asked your name, did I?” He thought aloud, feeling kind of like an ass.

You didn’t respond.

“I understand if you want your actual name, still. So… if you want…” What was he saying? He wasn’t sure why but he wanted to make you feel better somehow. He could feel the pain radiating off of you in waves.

“Slate.” You whispered and walked to the bed, sitting down on the edge of it and looking at your exposed and heavily scarred thighs.

Papyrus tore his stare away from your marked flesh, away from the slight trembling of your shoulders. He knew it was time to leave. There was only so much he could do, really.

 _Don’t get attached._ He reminded himself. It wasn’t that he was afraid. No, he wasn’t afraid. He was just headstrong and… he’d rather shape his own story rather than see it shaped for him. He’d rather grow into a future of his choosing, or at least never know that the choice was never there. The illusion gone, he resented the stark path.

He realized it wasn’t fair to you. To resent you because of what Blue was constantly trying to influence—not only was it cruel and unnecessary, but Papyrus thought back to that murky, drained part of your soul.

He wouldn’t be the reason that was there.

Papyrus settled on the couch and thought for a moment longer, staring up at the ceiling before the events of the day caught up to him and he passed out from exhaustion, jaw unhinged.

 

* * *

 

You huddled on the bed, making yourself as small as you could. It did little good, you knew. No one was in the room now, no one would hurt you at the moment. Still the threat of punishment haunted you. You reluctantly got under the covers. The need for warmth exceeded the need to be ready to flee.

You were still so… so very tired.

With any luck morning would find you back in your own bed. Maybe this was all some weird fever dream. Maybe you were dead, actually. Mirthlessly, you laughed at yourself. Even in your afterlife experiences you were a means to an ends. Your soul was a key to the salvation of creatures that certainly seemed deserving of it.

Why did everything smell strongly of syrup? Was it syrup? You couldn’t tell right now. You were congested from crying. You were just glad the bed was as soft and warm as Papyrus’s hoodie had been. Perhaps more so.

Your thoughts returned to Ko again and again. Papyrus had said that he was as good as dead, didn’t he? What did that mean?

Why were you crying for him?

Your fingers hugged into your inked flesh, pinching the scars that left ridges on your skin. You felt the scars on your body crawl—it was painful and only happened when you felt guilty.

You weren’t crying for him.

“He can’t hurt me anymore.” You realized and broke. Silent sobs shook your body as you curled in on yourself further. You finally came to the realization that the years of abuse…

It was over. Finally over.

You felt cowardly. You felt relief. You felt so many things… but your shame was in that you felt that you should be grieving.

You let out a growl and made yourself quit crying. There was nowhere to go but up, right? Metaphorically?

You were Slate. This was the fresh start you needed.

This was you without Ko. Without scars.

You buried your face into the covers and pillows. You were determined to make this work somehow.

You could exist without him. You could learn how to be you again.

Maybe it was time to quit smoking.

**Author's Note:**

> If you have any questions, you can hit me up in the comments here, or on tumblr at http://zaiyofics.tumblr.com/
> 
> And just to reiterate, if there is something that is especially triggering to you, such as blood or kidnapping, please let me know. This fic is going to get very dark and I want to make this enjoyable for everyone!
> 
> Have a question for Blue, Shale, or anyone in Soul-Searcher? Leave an ask for them on my tumblr, even on anon, and they'll answer it!


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